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ASSIGNMENT
Review the paper Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (Liston 2018) and reflect on what STEM education looks like in your classroom.
Download the Weather and Climate resource.
Open the teacher guide and pupil worksheet for activity 1 & 2
Activity 1: Is it weather or climate?
Activity 2: Weather Detectives
Carry out activities 1 and 2 and complete the pupil worksheets.Provide your feedback on these activities and how you could use them with your class.
Make reference to anything you think could be improved or added to the activities.Post your response (150 words minimum) as a reply to this post.
Please also comment on at least one other participant’s post.
UPDATE JULY 25: Since July 1st our facilitators have occasionally observed that course reflections may be generated with the assistance of AI tools. While AI can be a helpful support for drafting ideas or exploring different ways to express your thinking, it is essential that your forum posts reflect your own understanding and engagement with the course content. This is in line with the Department of Education and Youth’s Summer Course guidelines.
Before posting to the forum, we encourage you to take a moment to review your contributions and, if necessary, revise them to ensure they are appropriate and authentically your own. -
The resources offer a fantastic opportunity to integrate real-world learning into the classroom. Setting up a weather station on the school grounds would provide students with hands-on experience in collecting data, fostering skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Students can learn to measure temperature, humidity, wind speed, and precipitation, helping them understand the key differences between weather and climate.
In this activity, students would engage in scientific inquiry, use technology to analyse data, apply engineering principles to set up and maintain the station, and explore mathematical concepts through data interpretation and graphing. This could extend to creating a weather and climate bulletin for the school, which would involve the broader community in understanding the importance of climate change and sustainable practices.
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This is a great idea! The weather station project is a fantastic way to engage students in STEM fields through hands-on, real-world learning. It combines science, technology, engineering, and math seamlessly, The opportunity to collect and analyze data encourages critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Plus, involving the broader school community through a climate bulletin is a brilliant way to raise awareness about climate change and sustainability.
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Hi Colin,
The idea of a weather bulletin is an excellent method of developing leadership capacity among students in school. I like the idea of this being modelled by perhaps the Green Schools Team or the 5th/6th class students. It would develop confidence among students as well as contributing to greater awareness of weather and its impact on our daily lives.
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As a school we would have plenty of space for a weather station. I know the children would really engage in reading thermometer, measuring rainfall etc. So this is definitely something I could envisage us doing. I really like the idea of a weather bulletin board. Again this would be great for getting children to engage. I found the video clips, songs etc in this module very child friendly and will definitely use some of these when I am engaging in this topic with the children.
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Hi Colin,
Welcome to the course and thanks for sharing your ideas from this module.
I like how you plan to explore the weather in different curricular areas such as collecting data in maths and creating a weather and climate bulletin for the school to support and develop literacy.
As you have said there are many opportunities for skills development across these activities also to support STEM
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Yes – the gathering of weather data really crosses over so many curricular areas- maths, geography, science, SESE. Our Garden and Green school committees came together this year. We used some electronic data collection devices both in soil and at roof level. The data was then shared digitally as the pupils engaged their ICT skills, and could access the same data at home too.
They thoroughly enjoyed it and because the data pertained to their own area it had added value and meaning for the pupils.
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THE ESA activities Nose High in the Sky and Weather versus Climate provide wonderful oppourtuniteis for teaching children about weather. Setting up a local weather station in the school would greatly enhance the children’s learning experience of weather and help build a broader understanding of how scientist use tools to measure and predict the weather. We are so lucky in our school to have a very small garden where you could set up a basic weather station. I think the children would really enjoy collecting the data and it could involve a whole school approach. In our school we also have a green team and student council that could help monitor the weather and report back to all the clases. I think the children would really get on board with this. It could also be used as a opportunity to monitor weather by checking in with the local weather stations to compare data. There is many opportunities for hands on learning in science and maths here.
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I think that this is a great idea
I love the idea thar the whole school would be involved in the activity and that it would be their responsibility to monitor the weather. This would give them an excellent understanding of how to measure weather and the tools to use to do it.
It is such a good resource to have a small garden. We too have one and it would be an ideal place to set up.
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The small garden in the school is a great way of relating the effects of weather on crops. The students could perhaps inform other classes on the status of the crops and daily weather updates on the school intercom or at assembly. The weather station will give the students ownership of the learning though the green team and student council.
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The school garden is such a great idea. We moved into a new building 2 years ago and we have such great opportunities to have a school garden where children can have a hands on approach. Children will also have an opportunity to see the effects of weather on crops and plants , which many may not have currently .
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I think setting up a whole school weather station is a brilliant idea. Giving the children are ands on way of exploring Science and Maths is really what it’s all about. I love the idea of involving the Green Schools committee and the Student Council too, it would ensure that all classes were involved and that one class wouldn’t become responsible for monitoring the data.
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Hi Colin,
Identifying the difference between weather and climate is an excellent starting point in demonstrating a deeper understanding for all students about both terms. I think it can be daunting taking on new STEM activities but as you have mentioned, students can learn a range of new skills using technology that is associated with temperature, wind speed and precipitation.
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I think this activity is very apt and relevant to address those misconceptions children may have about weather and climate from the start. The resources and activities provided are very relevant to them. I like the idea in activity one of thinking back to past birthdays and remembering what the weather was like that day. To group them by month of birthday will consolidate even further how weather is the state of the atmosphere in a specific time. The second activity of being a weather detective is a lovely activity to put problem solving and practical skills to work. The conversation around where to place the thermometer and what elements will affect it will provide huge learning alone. In order to adapt it to younger classes I think they idea of setting up a thermometer and taken the temperature daily at the same time is lovely and simple and we can do comparisons of days using words such a hotter, cooler, warmer etc. We may also be able to brainstorm what other type of weather we can measure getting our ideas from looking out the window.
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Hi Aine, I completely agree with you! The idea of linking weather to past birthdays is both personal and memorable for children, making the concept much easier to grasp. I also love the practical nature of the “weather detective” task as it really does encourage critical thinking and discussion. Your adaptation for younger classes using thermometers and simple temperature comparisons is perfect—it’s accessible yet still rich in learning.
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The ESA activities, particularly ‘Nose Up High in the Sky’ and ‘Weather vs Climate,’ offer engaging, hands-on learning experiences. In the classroom, these can be enhanced by setting up a simple weather station on school grounds. Younger students could use thermometers to record daily temperatures, while older students could collect additional data such as rainfall, wind speed, and cloud cover. This practical approach helps students distinguish between short-term weather and long-term climate trends, while developing key STEM skills—scientific observation, technological use for data recording, engineering in setting up instruments, and mathematical skills through data analysis.
To lead the school in exploring weather and climate, I would initiate a whole-school inquiry project using the module’s content. Students could collaborate across year levels, share findings in assemblies or digital platforms, and take turns managing the weather station. This would promote collective practice, curiosity, and a strong foundation in environmental science.
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Hi Lousie,
I agree….learning experiences can be enhanced by setting up a simple weather station on the school grounds allowing the children to see how easy and efficient it is to use everyday items to design and create simple instruments to record the weather, eg, a rain gauge or a windsock, helping them track weather patterns over time in a fun and engaging way.
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Hi,
I love the idea of students collaborating across year levels and making it a whole school activity. Sharing findings in assemblies and making comparisons across seasons would be a lovely whole school activity that every child could get involved with and access at some level. Setting up a school weather station, with each class level responsible for observing and monitoring a different aspect of the weather presents a rich, hands-on opportunity to explore the natural world while developing essential STEM skills.
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I think a school weather station is a great idea Elaine. It makes children more interested and engaged in their learning and it also gives them ownership over their learning. Having a different weather station for each class levels also allows for varying level of difficulty and differentiation and allows children to see progress in their learning.
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Dr. Maeve Liston’s article highlights the need for integrated approaches that combine science, technology, engineering, and math through authentic, design-based learning. She emphasizes the need for better teacher training and resources to make STEM more meaningful and impactful in the classroom.
I loved the idea of the simple song for the younger classes where the children can practice their scientific skills of observing and communicating. Also, the idea of keeping a weather log in the classroom helps to build observation skills, notice patterns, learn weather vocabulary, and connect daily experiences to science. It also encourages curiosity about the world around them.
Getting the children to ask parents or grandparents for traditional weather proverbs could spark discussions about how people predicted weather in the past compared to modern methods.
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Hi Sinéad
I agree that the idea of using proverbs etc is a fantastic way of teaching about weather and climate while at the same time enhancing literacy skills and visual arts could also be integrated here.The idea of a weather log is great and would be a great opportunity for group activities as small groups could have task of the daily log which they could present to the class.Gaeilge could also be used as part of the activity with older classes and weaker children could draw a picture to put on the wall.
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I agree I think asking parents or grandparents for traditional weather proverbs would be a great stimulus to spark discussion on how people predicted weather in the past and how this has changed over time. It could be a nice comparison activity if linking it with other schools around the country or around the world. It would be an interesting activity to see which proverbs have travelled from one area to another and would open discussion on why some areas report similar weather proverbs.
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What a lovely and thoughtful idea, Sinéad, to ask grandparents about weather proverbs. Weather is such a central topic in Irish life—something we all love to talk about, whether it’s rain, sunshine, or that rare fine spell. It’s woven into our daily conversations, our humour, our stories, and even our identity. Ireland’s ever-changing skies have inspired countless sayings and traditions, many of which have been passed down through generations.
Asking older generations about the weather is not only a charming way to engage with them, but also a meaningful way to explore our cultural heritage. These proverbs and stories are full of wisdom, often rooted in close observation of nature and the changing seasons. They offer a glimpse into how people in the past lived more closely with the land, relied on signs from the sky, and used language to make sense of the world around them.
I’m sure grandparents would be delighted to share their memories—stories of storms that lasted for days, long winters with heavy snow, or the excitement of a sunny spell in summer. I remember my own grandparents talking about big snowfalls and how they would bring the whole village to a standstill.
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I completely agree with your reflections—Dr. Liston’s emphasis on hands-on, integrated STEM learning really stood out to me as well. I think the use of songs and weather logs are such effective ways to engage younger children and develop key observational skills. I also love the idea of using traditional weather proverbs—it’s a great way to bring in family involvement and compare past and present approaches to understanding weather.
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I completely agree — those simple, hands-on activities like songs and weather logs are so effective for building early scientific thinking. It’s amazing how something as routine as observing the weather can nurture important skills like pattern recognition and communication.
I also love your point about involving parents and grandparents with traditional weather proverbs. It not only enriches the science lesson but also builds a real sense of community and connection across generations. Children get so engaged when they realise that their learning links to the world beyond the classroom.
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I would like to give children the opportunity to make their own weather recording devices i.e. thermometer, rain gauge, wind gauge, hygrometer and anemometer. I think this would help the children gain greater insight and understanding of how the devices actually work and how to use them, rather than just giving them premade instruments. It will provide great opportunities for collaborative learning experiences for the children to engage in problem solving activities regarding how to design and build the best devices. It will open discussion on what works well and what doesn’t and why. This will give the children the opportunity to take ownership and pride in creating their own school based weather station.
Children can use their weather recording devices to monitor and observe weather conditions each day. This could be integrated with data in maths and recording their daily weather station observations. This could then be further extended to explore climate by identifying average weather patterns over a longer period – i.e. 30 years or more. By comparing their findings to historical data, children can begin to understand how patterns emerge over time and the concept of climate zones (e.g., Ireland’s temperate maritime climate).
With knowledge gained from this module I feel I could lead the School Community in Studying Weather and Climate and facilitate collective practice through:
-Creating a Weather Club i.e. Involve students in taking daily readings, leading school assemblies with weather updates, or have children lead a daily weather report on the school intercom and maintaining a weather board in a central location.
-Engaging with the Wider Community: i.e. Link with local environmental groups or meteorologists. Share findings with parents through newsletters or school exhibitions. Collaborate with colleagues in schools around the country or abroad to compare weather patterns.
-Use Digital Platforms for Communication: i.e. Set up a class blog or Seesaw account where students post weekly weather updates or charts. Encourage students to make simple videos explaining what they’ve learned about weather and climate.
Some of the STEM skills fostered would be: Science- Forming hypotheses (e.g., “Does it rain more in October than in June?”). Technology- Using digital thermometers, tablets or weather apps to log and track data. Engineering- Designing and building simple weather instruments with classroom materials. Planning the layout and structure of the weather station. Problem-solving when instruments need maintenance or adjustment. Mathematics- Recording measurements (temperature, humidity, rainfall, wind speed) using units. Creating graphs and charts to show patterns over time. Interpreting averages and comparing monthly/seasonal/yearly data.
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Hi Elaine, thanks you have mentioned so many great ideas in your response. The hands on, cross curricular approach offers so many rich learning opportunities. Your idea that I think would work particularly well in the classroom is creating a Weather Club. It gives children ownership and responsibility while reinforcing daily routines, teamwork, and communication skills. Having students lead weather reports, update a weather board, or even share findings over the school intercom makes learning visible and meaningful, I could see the students fully engaging with this.
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Hi Elaine, I love your suggestions here. Well Done! I love the idea of creating a weather club in your school. The kids would love it and many are very interested in learning about weather. I think weather is a very good topic to teach school wide and to integrate with other subjects. My school is always keen to collaborate with outside agencies. Getting a meteorologist involved is a great idea. It’s always nice to involve parents in the students learning where possible too.
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Hi Elaine, thank you for all those lovely ideas, I really like the idea of creating a weather club within the school, I think there would be a lot of interest in this. I also love the idea of allowing the children the time to create their own instruments in order to measure various weather components rather than providing them with premade versions. I can see so much potential and benefits from taking the time to do this.
Marie
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Hi Elaine
Welcome to the course and thanks for sharing your ideas from this module.
I really like how you want to create a weather club in your school. This will allow children to take ownership of their learning and to share their information and data with others. I think that the weather is always topical but also with people such as Alan from Carlow weather, he is sharing his knowledge with everyone through social media, there seems to be more opportunities to explore weather and create weather instruments in the classroom now to link in with showing their work on Seesaw or other platforms.
It would be great to record data for a particular month this year and a different month next year, allowing for change of season also. This will also allow for comparison of data. There are so many meaningful learning opportunities within this idea. Thanks for sharing
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Hi Elaine…I love your idea of having the children make their own weather recording devices—it’s such a practical and engaging way to help them understand how each instrument works. Letting them figure out how to build things like rain gauges or anemometers encourages real problem-solving, and I agree it gives them a much deeper connection to the learning. It’s also a great way to promote teamwork, creativity, and critical thinking as they test and refine their designs together.
The way you plan to integrate the data collection into math lessons is really clever. Using their own results to make charts or compare with historical data adds real meaning to what could otherwise be abstract concepts. I also think your ideas for extending this into a whole-school project—like a Weather Club or weather reports on the intercom—would be brilliant for giving students ownership and a real audience for their work.
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I think these activities would help students differentiate between day to day weather and long-term climate by analysing statements and collecting real temperature data at school.
In the classroom I liked the idea of discussing proverbs, This could be a povocation to spark curiosity and interest in the topic. I think giving the students the opportunity to build a weather station by creating instruments, take daily readings from them, and discussing their findings would be fantastic. I think older classes could be given some agency with how they would like to record and display their data- digital tools/ weather logs/ posters/ graphs/ powerpoint/video presentation etc. Comparing their measured weather from their weather station to official meteorological or satellite data would be beneficial to teach accuracy and reliability. I think the hands on approach in these lessons engages the learners by allowing them to actively learn about weather and climate in a meaningful, fun and memorable way.
To add to these resources I think encourage classes to share data with other classes who could also be using the weather station in the school or another local school. If possible with a school in another region of the world to compare their data. The children may have a chance to share some of their findings with the whole school community at an assembly.
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Hi Tara,
Welcome to the course and thanks for sharing the ideas from module one.
Discussing weather proverbs and weather lore is always a big hit in my classroom. Encouraging the children to ask older relatives for their own weather proverbs and then creating posters to match. It is interesting the different weather proverbs from area to area.
I also agree with you regarding the weather station and the children gathering their own data as it allows the children to have ownership of both the data and their learning in how they present it. I always try to use real life data with the class to support engagement. By having their own weather station, there are lots of opportunities to record data and compare it to that of Met Eireann or even another school as you have mentioned.
I hope you enjoy the course
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I love Tara’s idea of comparing the data that the children collect with another school in a different region. Even if my school in Wexford was to compare data they collected from a weather station with another school in the North or West of the county they would learn a lot about how weather differs even within the same country!
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I really like your ideas, especially the hands on weather station activities and encouraging student agency in how they present data. Sharing data with other classes or even schools globally is a great extension that adds relevance and a broader perspective. It would definitely help students grasp the difference between weather and climate in an engaging, real-world context.
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I really like your ideas. I agree that discussing proverbs is a lovely way to get the children interested in weather, especially because it connects with family stories and local knowledge. I also like how you mentioned giving older classes more freedom to decide how to record and present their data. That would definitely help them feel more ownership of the project.
Comparing their results to official data is a great idea too. It would help them see how scientists work and understand why accurate measurements matter. I love your suggestion about linking up with another school. That would really show how weather can be so different depending on where you live.
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Firstly can I complement you on a very informative Module1.I have to say I have learnt a lot myself and actually can see a great unit of work ahead for September. Children and adults can get confused with the difference between weather and climate and I certainly will be recommending your activities to my colleagues.Textbooks are not the way to approach teaching weather and climate as only a snapshot of the topic is addressed while the videos /worksheets etc recommended here provide a solid basis for a unit of work.
Building a weather station or components of a weather station would be a very inclusive activity for a classroom as all children would be able to fully participate. One could also look at the weather forecast daily on News Jnr to get a prediction for the days ahead. Alternatively the whole school could engage in a project eg one month per season and display it in a central area. Older children could take younger children out to view the Weather Station.
Geography would also be covered when looking at Koppen’s Climate Classification and in Senior Classes or even Middle Levels Geography projects could be done on countries from the various regions.With not too much hard work literacy, music, art ,Gaeilge and STEM subjects along with History could be incorporated in to a unit of work for a term.-
I agree with you Monica in relation to the fact this whole topic gives us teachers an opportunity to move away from the textbooks for a part of the day and allow the children to explore the effects of climate change through research and collaborative, hands on learning. I’ll be teaching 3rd class next year and I can see them being highly engaged by the resources provided here and also the use of Ipads for research, always get a positive response!
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I will have Rang a 3 in September. I agree wholeheartedly that there is a great amount of work which can be woven into a cross-curricular project.
I love the idea of a weather station. The resources presented in this module are fantastic. Pupils will be very highly motivated when encouraged to take part.
This hands-on collaborative methodology is exciting.
I teach in a Gaelscoil and I will translate the relevant resources into Irish.
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Hi Monica
Welcome to the course and thank you for your feedback regarding the numerous resources in this module. There are lots of resources across the course that you can share with colleagues on the return to school.
I agree that while textbooks can support learning, it is important to allow for active and hands on learning to fully explore the topic of weather and climate. Hands on activities such as creating a weather station are more meaningful than written in a textbook. I also like how you plan to support this learning with weather forecast from News Jnr. This could lead to further drama lessons and the children planning their own weather forecast.
I hope you enjoy the other modules and get lots of ideas and resources for the new school year.
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After reviewing the “Unravelling STEM” article and engaging with the Weather and Climate resource, I see that STEM education in my classroom emphasizes inquiry, critical thinking, and real-world applications. Activities 1 and 2 effectively promote understanding of weather and climate concepts through hands-on investigation. I plan to use these activities to engage students actively in STEM by integrating technology, such as using digital weather tools or data logging apps. One area for improvement could be providing more differentiated tasks to support diverse learner needs. Additionally, including activities that explore climate change impacts could deepen understanding. Overall, these activities are practical, engaging, and aligned with STEM principles, helping students develop essential skills while making science relevant to their everyday lives.
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I agree, it would be good to see more differentiation. There are definitely some of my learners who would struggle with some of the text and the tables in the worksheets. If they are done in pairs or groups, I could be mindful of who works together and give each group member a specific task, more suited to their strengths.
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In the ESA document Activity 1, I liked the fact the whole focus of the exercise is to gain an understanding of the differences between weather and climate from the off. And once the children understand that, they can then explore the two in more detail. Like other participants have mentioned, using the pupils birthdays is a clever way to attract their attention, particularly with younger classes. Also, making them explain both weather and climate in their own words is an excellent way for the children to demonstrate their understanding. Using the climate Zone video for pupils would be a very good way to introduce the whole topic also. It is a really good resource.
Activity 2 is a very engaging activity which the children will enjoy doing. It’s a fairly detailed exercise and would need a little altering to suit the classes I teach. From my experience the pupils can find it difficult creating accurate graphs using the correct scales etc. so this exercise, and the fact that the children were involved in gathering the data, might get them to engage more with their work.
Activity 3: Climate reporters. This is an excellent resource and really allows the children to understand the effects of climate on their future lives. The ‘Paxi’ videos and animations are very informative and would be attractive to the pupils. Getting the children to work in groups is another aspect to the activity that I like. -
These two resources provide simple, practical and useful activities that teachers can easily use in the classroom. I love the idea of using the children’s birthdays as a way of discussing weather, bringing in photographs to discuss past birthdays and by grouping the children into their month groups to observe patterns of weather behaviour. I think this would bring huge opportunities for discussion and allow the children to understand how the weather is always changing. From watching and discussing the climate zone video, the children would have a good reference to analyse the statements and give informed reasons for choosing weather or climate
Measuring the temperature activity would give the children amazing hands-on experience of how weather data is collected and analysed. They world be practising vital skills such as predicting, observing, measuring, analysing and comparing their results. I think the children would engage more in creating the data display as they have been part of collecting the data first hand. I love the idea of setting up the weather station in September and allowing the children to observe the weather over the entire school year, maybe collecting data at 12pm every Friday.
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Having read and reflected on the article unravelling STEM, I would be confident in saying that activities I have carried in the classroom over the years have incorporated all elements of STEM and from courses I have attended the message has been to facilitate a pupil led inquiry activity. Very often the engineering aspect comes to fruition in the reflection and debrief conversations after the activities. The ESA resources are a great tool to support the teaching and learning of weather and climate. I would probably use them a supporting resource which I would adapt for my audience. I love the is it weather or climate activity as there is great scope here for discussion to facilitate understanding. There is great opportunity to link this topic with so many others outside of the SESE subjects including Gaeilge, Maths and Music. Making their own weather station is a wonderful project and luckily there is garden area to do so. Creating and making rain gauges, anemometers, measuring, comparing etc as well as the opportunity to share their findings on a school notice board would be vey enjoyable for the class. The weather detectives measuring air temperature would require some consistency however there is great opportunity for class discussions, decision making, taking ownership not to mention collecting, analysing and reporting data.
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Having carried out both the ‘Is it weather or Climate’ and ‘Weather Detectives’ Activities, I think that children of all ages would thoroughly enjoy them. I think Activity 1 is pitched perfectly for the younger and middle classes and can easily be made more challenging and detailed for the older classes. I think that Activity 2 is more difficult and would be better suited to more senior classes. I have 6th class for the upcoming academic year and will definitely use this resource. I think it is a great resource for pair/group work and encourages thought-provoking discussions about weather and climate. I also think it is a great way of integrating maths into SESE in a fun and active way by completing graphs and averages based on the weather. Overall, I feel that both of these activities and resources would be invaluable for the teaching and learning of weather and climate in the primary school and can be easily adapted to suit all class levels.
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Hi Eoghan
Welcome to the course and thanks for sharing your thoughts on these resources. Having senior classes myself, I have used the resources with my own class to explore the difference between weather and climate. The activity does allow for lots of critical thinking and discussion about weather and climate. Also, the activity allows for lots of opportunities to integrate with other areas and for children to work with real life data to create more meaningful learning opportunities. I hope you enjoy the course and enjoy using these resources with your class in September.
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I really enjoyed this module and got lots of practical ideas for the classroom. I loved the idea of using weather proverbs and getting the children involved in building simple weather instruments. These hands-on activities make learning so much more meaningful and help link science with other subjects like Gaeilge, Maths and even Art. I’m excited to try some of these out in September!
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What stood out to me in ESA Activity 1 was how it begins by clearly distinguishing between weather and climate. This initial focus helps set the stage for deeper exploration of both concepts later on. I thought the idea of linking the activity to the children’s birthdays was a really engaging way to draw them in—especially effective with younger students. Encouraging pupils to define weather and climate in their own words is also a great strategy, as it allows them to actively process and demonstrate their understanding. I also think the Climate Zone video is a valuable tool—it provides a strong introduction to the topic and helps bring the concepts to life in an accessible way.
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When exploring STEM, it is essential to incorporate all four elements—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—rather than treating them in isolation. Equally important is providing pupils with activities rooted in real-life experiences, as this makes learning more meaningful and engaging. Dr. Maeve Liston’s paper highlights this vital point, emphasising the value of authentic, hands-on learning that connects classroom concepts to the world around us.
I think the resources in the Nose Up High in the Sky pack are excellent. I teach senior classes, and I found the Talking About Weather lesson particularly valuable. There is great scope to extend the activity by having pupils research additional weather proverbs, which could spark really interesting discussions. It also presents a perfect opportunity to explore the rich language associated with weather and different weather events—something that’s especially relevant here in Ireland, where talking about the weather is practically a national pastime!
The infant classes already record and discuss the weather each day, and this could be meaningfully tied in with the weather station. Senior pupils could share information from the station with the younger classes, helping them to compare their own observations with the recorded data. This would not only reinforce scientific concepts like observation and data collection, but also foster collaboration and communication between age groups—creating a real sense of whole-school learning.
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Hi Ann
Welcome to the course and thanks for sharing your thoughts on the resources in this module. I have used the resource Nose High Up in the Sky with my own senior classes and it provided lots of opportunities for hands on activities, research and with our green screen we also got to record our own weather forecast in both English and as Gaeilge. As you have mentioned there is great opportunities for vocabulary development.
I really like how you want the older children to work with the younger classes in observing and recording the weather. It would be a lovely collaborative learning opportunity and as you have said a real sense of whole-school learning.
I hope you enjoy the course.
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The two resources are really well laid out and easy to use. I think the young people I work with would really enjoy the hands on elements of making the weather station and record keeping. The opportunities for them to work in pairs/groups and to relate the learning to their own lives really appeal as well.
We would have space to safely leave the weather station in our garden and could broaden out the teaching to others by getting the young people to explain what they are doing and the jobs of the different instruments. There would also be opportunity for them to report back on their findings.
There would be a small amount of preparation involved in getting the supplies organised and building the instruments but I feel they would be really valuable, memorable lessons for the young people.
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Hi Amelia
Welcome to the course I hope you enjoy it and get lots of ideas for the young people you are working with.
A weather station does take organising and preparation to create the different instruments, but as the learners are taking ownership and developing these instruments themselves they are really engaged in the task. I like how you plan to put the weather station in the garden and allow those you work with to explain their work to others. This really supports the ownership of their learning also. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this.
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Review the paper Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (Liston 2018) and reflect on what STEM education looks like in your classroom.
Activity 1: Is it weather or climate:
This is fantastic activity as it clearly engages the children into discussing facts related to weather and climate as well as offering a forum to discuss the differences/similarities between both terms. I would tie this activity in with a Geography lesson focusing on a sense of place. Children could identify some of the locations mentioned on a map. They could also incorporate Google Maps – calculating the distance between Dublin and Bergen or Wexford and Oslo, for example.
I like the weather detective activity also. This would work well as part of teaching Data in senior classes where children explore coordinates, as well plotting information related to weather on a chart.I would make the following improvements/alterations to the activities to improve them further:
Green Schools team/Student Council or 6th class to trial the resources and then present their findings to the school at an assembly. This would act as peer tutoring and modelling for younger learners. -
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Setting up a weather station with junior infants can be a fun and hands-on way to introduce them to weather concepts. The key is to keep the activity simple, interactive, and visual.
Objective:
Introduce children to basic weather elements (sun, rain, wind, temperature) by helping them create a simple weather station and observe daily changes.Ask: “What is weather?”
Show pictures of sunny, rainy, windy, and snowy days.
Introduce weather words with gestures or songs (e.g., “Rain, Rain, Go Away”).Building the weather station:
Help the children set up:
Thermometer: Show them where it’s placed and explain it shows how hot or cold it is.
Rain Gauge: Place the bottle gauge outside. Mark measurements with tape.
Wind Sock/Pinwheel: Let them take turns running with the pinwheel to see how wind makes it spin.Cloud Viewer: Use a paper viewer to look at the sky and find different clouds.
Daily weather reporting:
Pick a “Weather Reporter of the Day.”
Let the child check the thermometer, look at the sky, and decide:Is it sunny? Cloudy? Windy?
Is it warm or chilly?
Is there rain in the gauge?
Let them place magnetic/weather symbols on the class board and draw the weather in the daily weather diary.To Finish the activity sing a weather song: e.g., “What’s the Weather Like Today?”
Do a weather-themed movement game: “If it’s sunny, jump up! If it’s windy, spin!” -
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I think these activities could be used across all classes in the school. They are practical and hands on and the pupils would benefit hugely from this. In our school we are lucky to have a lot of green space outside which would lend itself to these activities. I also think we could have a buddy system with younger and older classes to work together on some of the activities.
The difference between climate and weather can be a tricky concept to get across and I think the activities here would really consolidate that learning. Whole school assemblies could be used to present findings from the weather stations, sharing the responsibility for different tasks across junior and senior classes, e.g. temperature, rainfall, cloud cover, windspeed.
I like the opportunities for collaboration in these activities. This can include collaboration between classes in the school but also outside of school, e.g. having input from parents or grandparents re weather proverbs etc.
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Module 1: Weather and climate
This activity is a great way to introduce students to the difference between weather and climate. Understanding the difference between these is essential for grasping larger concepts especially with the growing concern over climate change.To effectively use this in the classroom, first, I would have students engage with data from local weather patterns, followed by a discussion of broader global climate data. We would use tools like weather apps / websites that display real- time data, this would make it a more interactive and hands on experience for them. To get a wider range as a class we could analyse the weather data for a week and then compare it with long-term climate patterns in our region to further their understanding of this concept.
After learning this I think it would be a nice idea for our ECO team to set up a weather station in the school.
– ECO team members would take on specific roles such as data collectors, analysts and reporters.
– Weather station would be placed outside in a safe place for members to access daily.
– The weather station would be build by the ECO team and include all weather instruments to collect weather data such as: Thermometer, Barometer, Anemometer, Wind vane.We would have a data collection plan:
A key part of any weather station is consistent data collection. The ECO Team can set up a schedule for recording weather conditions. I would divide responsibilities so that each student has specific roles, such as:
– Daily Logs: Every day, certain ECO Team members will be responsible for going to the station and recording the data (temperature, humidity, wind speed, etc.).
– Weekly Analysis: Once a week, the team should analyse the data collected and summarize trends.
– Weather Reports: Once a month or term, the ECO Team could present their findings in a short weather report for the school, highlighting interesting trends and patterns (e.g., “Our school’s average temperature this month was higher than last year, suggesting that it’s getting warmer”).Integrating a weather station into the school provides a wonderful opportunity to engage students with real-world data and foster the development of key STEM skills. Leading this initiative would require planning, collaboration, and ongoing engagement with students but it could become a cornerstone of STEM education at school.
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Activity 1
UsefulActivity 1
Useful post lesson activity to help children clarify & consolidate the notion of there being a difference between weather and climate.
Section 1. I might give two coloured pencils to each pair & ask them to e.g. colour the weather statements yellow and the climate ones green or write a C or W beside each speech bubble.
Practical layout for teacher assessment listening to pairs’ discussions whilst moving around the room and concise sentences in section 2 will quickly show who has grasped the concept. I would also ask pairs to use “think, pair, share”, especially for section 3 to feedback to the group and stimulate further whole class discussion.
Activity 2
A lovely activity I am going to set up in the school yard with a senior class in September. I would not print out Q1 rather just display it on the white board have the class discussion /brain storm and note on board & in copies
Instrument we will need
Other considerations
We can then stick in Annex 2 and begin to collect data.
I would make sure to work on averages and graphs in Maths in preparation for analysing results and for integration. I might move the class into their Maths ability groupings for the results section as some will need support even drawing the graph & transferring data, whilst other groups would be able to work independently and go on to further calculations & the internet search etc when finished initial tasks more quickly.
post lesson activity to help children clarify & consolidate the notion of there being a difference between weather and climate.
Section 1. I might give two coloured pencils to each pair & ask them to e.g. colour the weather statements yellow and the climate ones green or write a C or W beside each speech bubble.
Practical layout for teacher assessment listening to pairs’ discussions whilst moving around the room and concise sentences in section 2 will quickly show who has grasped the concept. I would also ask pairs to use “think, pair, share”, especially for section 3 to feedback to the group and stimulate further whole class discussion.
Activity 2
A lovely activity I am going to set up in the school yard with a senior class in September. I would not print out Q1 rather just display it on the white board have the class discussion /brain storm and note on board & in copies
Instrument we will need
Other considerations
We can then stick in Annex 2 and begin to collect data.
I would make sure to work on averages and graphs in Maths in preparation for analysing results and for integration. I might move the class into their Maths ability groupings for the results section as some will need support even drawing the graph & transferring data, whilst other groups would be able to work independently and go on to further calculations & the internet search etc when finished initial tasks more quickly. -
Having reviewed the paper ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics’ I can see clearly the STEM that I use in my class and areas where I can introduce STEM and use it cross-curricular. Also the amount of resources that I have now banked from this Module that I plan to incorporate into my lessons next year.
Weather or Climate? I really liked this activity. It works well and straight away the children would learn the difference between weather and climate. When this is made very clear and it allows the children to learn more about each topic without confusion. I would use this daily as a talk and discussion exercise.
Weather Detectives: I like that the children are the ones who are collecting the data. This allows them to have ownership over the exercised and helps retain their interest for longer. The children will also be able to make comparisons between different locations.
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Hi Karen,
Welcome to the course and I am delighted that you have lots of resources from this module that you can use with your class next year.
Weather or Climate provides practical examples for the pupils to demonstrate the difference between the two concepts. As you have said when they are clear on the difference between them, the pupils can learn more about the individual topics without confusion.
Weather detectives gives the pupils real ownership of their learning as they are the ones to create the weather instruments and collect the data. As you have said it will maintain their interest and keep them engaged for longer. If you had a friend teaching in a contrasting area it would be great idea to explore the differences between their locations over time. Otherwise you could consider collecting this data at different times each school year to compare seasonal changes etc. I hope you enjoy the course
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The paper, Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (Liston 2018), discusses the process for STEM lessons and the need for them to utilise skills such as collaboration, innovation, inquiry and communication amongst peer groups. In my classroom, STEM education based on the fundamental knowledge associated with
Hands-on practical learning whereby the pupils do the thinking and the doing.Activity 1:
Liston utilises the idea of real-life contextual learning for the pupils to ensure it encapsulates its full value. The use of enquiry based learning and pupil application across a variety of curricular areas.Activity 2:
In my classroom, the “Weather Detectives” activity again insists that students themselves are using their skill sets to apply practical and useful methods of enquiry along with creating their own instruments for practice. Here, collaboration, communication and innovation is key.
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Nose up High in the Sky – Observing and Measuring Weather Conditions by ESA is a practical unit aimed at 8–10 year olds. Slide 26 specifically investigates the science behind local weather proverb.
Slide 26 introduces traditional weather proverbs such as Red sky at night, shepherds delight, red sky in the morning, shepherds warning.
This signifies a scattering of blue light due to atmospheric particles/high pressure systems.
A ring around Sun/Moon, means that rain will come real soon
This is caused by ice crystals in high cirrus clouds heralding shifting weather fronts
Children could use sensory observation and instruments (thermometer, rain gauge, anemometer) to test whether these local proverbs are true and reliable. These should be placed away from buildings or trees that may affect readings and set up on flat ground if possible
Children could then record real data and compare this with what the proverbs predicted by measuring daily at the same time and then record temperature, wind, precipitation, etc.
Slide 27 is part of the ESA Climate Detectives, What is the difference between weather and climate?”
Weather is short-term (minutes to days), changes quickly and describes current conditions (e.g., raining, sunny)
Climate on the other hand is long-term (typically 30 years), changes slowly and describes average conditions (e.g., temperate, tropical)The whole school could investigate climate v weather during Science Week and then showcase their investigations for the Curious Minds Award.
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I can see that real STEM learning is about more than just ticking boxes for science or maths. It is about letting children take the lead, explore, question and link ideas across subjects. In my classroom, I try to include as many hands on activities as possible where pupils can collect data, work together and share what they have learned.
I found the ‘Is it Weather or Climate?’ activity very effective. It is simple but clear and gets the children thinking about how weather is what happens in the moment while climate is long-term. Using examples from their own lives, like birthdays would really helps them understand. I think it would be good to add a visual sorting activity where they colour code statements to show if they are weather or climate.
The ‘Weather Detectives’ activity was also very engaging. My class love to take measurements themselves and seeing how temperatures can change. I would link this with maths by making graphs of the data. I might also include a section where pupils compare their results with Met Éireann data or use a weather app to see how accurate their recordings were.
Overall, both activities are well designed and easy to adapt for different ages. They really bring STEM learning to life and help children see how science and maths connect to their own world.
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Hi Michelle
Welcome to the course, I hope you enjoy the different modules.
I agree that the weather or climate lesson is very clear but also very effective to explore the children’s thinking regarding the difference between weather and climate. I also like your idea for the children to colour code the statements to show their learning.
A weather station is a fantastic resource in any school, I used to have a thermometer outside my classroom and children checked it daily, they were so engaged on the colder days to compare the temperature both inside and outside of the classroom. As you have mentioned they could then compare with the Met Eireann data to see how accurate they were. They could then use their own data to generate bar charts or trend graphs. It makes the process of creating and representing data more meaningful for the children. Thanks for sharing your ideas.
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Hi Michelle,
I also agree that the children in a science class benefit from being able to apply their learning in a hands on activities as it solidifies their learning and allows them to bring their learning to real life settings. By making a weather station in class, it might encourage them to do the same at home and become more aware of how to dress appropriately to the weather and become a conscious global citizen. This also ties into the article by Maeve Liston encouraging the use of all elements of STEM where they can apply their maths and science from the classroom to engineer solutions to everyday issues and use technology affectively!
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STEM plays a central role in my classroom. Over the past number of years I have really embraced the use of technology and ICT to support my teaching instruction. Partly due to the purchasing of additional resources purchased by my school but also owing to courses and an intentional direction of using cross-curricular integration to encourage extension activities in the area of STEM. STEM week has taken over from Science week and as a result teachers have come with many different ideas such as using Lego activities throughout the school. Activities 1 and 2 are very practical above. I would split my class in two and pair children off to learn about climate and weather. Students could research and then present about the differences between both terms. This could be followed up by a Blooket/Kahoot quiz. Using interactive resources will embed the students’ learning further in a fun and enjoyable way.
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In this module I can see the benefit of introducing proverbs regarding the weather to elicit prior knowledge from the children and also applying new learning to commonly heard phrases- potentially that have been taken for granted and not considered.
I work in a Gaelscoil and I would like to extend the lesson to include Seanfhocail “is maith an scéalaí an aimsir” (time will tell) and “Ní hé lá na báistí ná lá na bpáistí” (a rainy day isn’t a good day for children to play). These two phrases have links to weather.
I think it would be a good activity to create their own weather monitoring equipment, from the pdf Nose up high in the sky, to allow them to take ownership over the activity. I also really enjoyed the video clip from the BBC explaining the high/ low pressures and the fronts. This is beneficial as it shows their learning in an everyday setting.
Regarding the difference between weather and climate, it was interesting to see the connection between the globe and the amount of sunlight the areas get to make a clear distinction as the areas closer to the equator will naturally be exposed to more sunlight than the polar regions. This doesn’t change like the everyday weather does.
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Doireann, I think your idea of incorporating seanfhocail is a brilliant way to blend language and culture into the topic of weather—especially in a Gaelscoil setting. It’s a lovely way to connect prior knowledge with new learning, and using proverbs like “Is maith an scéalaí an aimsir” gives the lesson added depth and relevance. I also agree that giving students the chance to build their own weather instruments from The Nose High Up in the Sky resource is a great way to promote hands-on learning and ownership of the process. Maith thú
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I also like the idea of incorporating seanfhocail into the topic of weather. I have looked at the common english sayings but did not use the seanfhocail before. Alos I am sure children from other countries or from families from other countries have their own sayings which would be interesting to learn.
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The paper Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics by Liston 2018 was very informing and insightful. It provided me with opportunities to reflect on STEM education in my classroom. On reflection, STEM education was an area I feel I would not have been confident teaching in newly qualified. However, I have tried my best. I always use an integrated approach to STEM and try to ensure learning is meaningful and connected for the pupils, as this is very important.
The activities mentioned were great lessons. They both provided student’s with opportunities for active and meaningful learning and also made lessons student centred. I think weather detectives was a great one. This provides opportunities for linkage and integration also. Looking at weather and climate in different countries and comparing and contrasting with other weather in Ireland, creating acrostic poems in literacy, designing and making different weather tools in visual arts such as a rain gauge. Last year in. Y classroom, each child had a monthly calendar. Every morning, we would look at the day and date and log the weather using a simple drawing or symbol such as a cloud, sun, or umbrella. This was a great hit with the children. They loved coming in on a Monday filling in their symbols for what the weather was like at the weekend. This allowed me to see it was much more than a simple learning task the children completed in school. At the end of each month, we would analyse our findings and see what weather we encountered the most this month. We would then check if the weather was in line with stereotypical weather for that month. Discussion would occur surrounding this. This again provided opportunities for integration with maths and data. What weather was the most and least popular, how many days of rain in November, how many days of sunshine across the winter months, and so on. We stapled together the calendar pages for the academic year. I even provided children with the months of July and August for them to keep logging if they wish to do so. On reflection, this was a very meaningful activity that we carried out for the school year. It is definitely something I would recommend trying in your classroom with your students as the learning opportunities are endless!
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1. Title of the lesson: Weather Detectives
2. Subject area/s: Science
3. Class: 1st /2nd class
• The concepts of weather and climate are often thought to be the same thing. To change this, it is essential to understand that when we speak about weather conditions we are referring to short periods of time, such as hours, days. when we talk about climate we are implying long periods, such as 30 years or more.
• Whole class discussion. Types of weather e.g. cloudy, windy, wet, showers, fog, mild, humid, sunning, snowing.
• Record the weather for the week. Use a thermometer is record the temperature on a daily basis. Record weather pattern.
• Record the child giving the weather forecast and play it to the other classes in the school.
• To record the footage, you would mount iPad on a tripod. Hang a green screen in the background.
• Use microphones to record the audio
• Use adobe spark to create the background
• The video can then be edited using imovie
• Also music can be added to the beginning and ending of the video by using bensound.com.
• videos, voice recordings, comments and links, this gives the children the opportunity to engage with the material at home. I also post photos for parents Vo they can view the work the children are doing in class. -
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By setting up a weather station in our primary school using The Nose High Up in the Sky and the Weather vs Climate resources offers a hands-on way to engage students with their environment.
The students can develop key skills such as observation, data recording, analysis, and interpretation by measuring temperature, rainfall, and wind speed daily. Leading this initiative involves challenges, such as ensuring consistent data collection, managing equipment in Ireland’s unpredictable weather, and maintaining student interest.
However, it provides rich cross-curricular links. For example, in Science, the students would learn about weather patterns; in Maths, they handle graphs and averages; in Geography, they explore local climate; and in English, they write weather reports or create diaries.
Guiding other classes promotes teamwork, communication, and leadership. Overall, a school weather station fosters curiosity and scientific thinking while encouraging responsibility and collaboration across year groups and subjects.
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After downloading and reviewing Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics by Dr. Maeve Liston, I am fairly confident that I am very aware of the importance of integrating engineering and maths into my STEM activities. Initially, engineering was often forgotten about but I find the children gain most insight from an integrated approach.
Activities 1 and 2 are excellent activities. Teaching 4th class, we look closely at weather and the devises used to collect weather data in our local area. The children love setting up the weather station and collecting data daily from it. We usually set up a home made weather station in a clear area in front of the school in a grassy area. We make a rain gauge and using graduated cylinders from our maths area, we measure and record on graph paper the ml of rain/precipartion collected. We use a commercial and home made anenometers to record wind speed and the children enjoy designing and making these. We record the temperature daily and graph the results and observe the rise and fall according to the seasons. We also observe and record, as best we can, the hours of sunrise and sunset. The children really enjoy these activities.
In 5th class we look at climate in more detail and examine the different climatic zones. Children enjoy learning about these through project work. They also make Kahoot quizzes for the rest of the class.
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I really enjoyed both activities, especially “Weather Detectives”. I think my students would love collecting their own temperature data and making simple graphs to track changes. It’s a great way to bring science and maths together in a fun, hands-on way.
The first activity is also very useful to help them understand the difference between weather and climate, which can sometimes be confusing. Using real-world examples and images made that concept much clearer.
If I use these in class, I might also have students compare their results with local forecasts or even reach out to another class in a different region to see how weather differs. I’d also add a short reflection activity where they explain what they found in their own words. Also, using school blog or seesaw would be great to share their work woth the rest of the classes and make these activities a collaborative project across different school levels.
Overall, I think these are great resources that could fit nicely into a wider science or geography unit.
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Hi Ainoa Angel,
Welcome to the course and I am glad that you enjoyed the activities in this module. Having used Weather Detectives in my own class they are always engaged in recording the temperature and making comparisons with Met Eireann. We also used the data for our own trend graphs which really brought data to life in my class.
I like your idea to reach out to another class in a different area. I have penpals for my class and it might be a lovely idea to use that to explore weather trends in another area. There are lots of lovely cross curricular options as you have mentioned. Thanks for sharing.
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I found the paper Unravelling STEM (Liston, 2018) to be very interesting. STEM is something that I am not particularly confident in in my own classroom, but I an area that I would like to improve on. The paper and the lessons here have given me good and practical ways to deliver structured STEM activities to the pupils.
I believe the lessons here provide excellent learning opportunities for children all about weather and climate. They combine Science and Geography lessons from the curriculum, while also providing excellent STEM learning opportunities. Including structured STEM lessons for the pupils is essential in the classroom today, and these lessons allow the pupils to use critical thinking skills, problem solving skills, and enable them to work as a team and communicate effectively.
We have a sensory garden in our school which would be a perfect place to set up a weather station and carry out the tasks in the lesson. This weather station could be used by all classes once created and so would lend itself very well to whole school learning. I love these activities as they are hands on, and give the children the chance to really feel like scientists, engineers and meteorologists.-
Hi Cathy,
Thanks for your post. This course is a wonderful opportunity to strengthen your STEM confidence, and I hope the resources provide a springboard for STEM activities in your class in the coming academic year.
Your sensory garden sounds like an ideal spot to locate the weather station, and will provide learners with plenty of opportunity to measure and report findings. By giving the learners ownership of these activities and hands-on experiences, they will develop their STEM skills.As you mentioned, it is an opportunity for learners to do the work of real scientists, and an opportunity to discuss the wealth of career opportunities STEM has to offer, too!
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In Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics by M. Liston (2018), the author emphasises the interconnectedness of STEM fields and the importance of teaching students how these disciplines influence and shape our world. The article challenges educators to move beyond the traditional boundaries of each subject and explore the ways they intersect in real-life contexts. This holistic view of STEM encourages critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving are essential skills for students. The purpose of the article, especially in the context of 6th-class primary education, is to promote an integrated approach that connects these fields, allowing young students to see the practical applications of what they learn and how these subjects work together.
To implement the STEM approach through the topic of climate in my 6th-class primary school I would like to design projects that integrate scientific concepts with technology, engineering, and mathematics to explore real-world climate issues. One idea would be to have students investigate the impact of climate change on local ecosystems. They could collect data on temperature, rainfall, and plant growth, and use this information to create simple models predicting future climate conditions.
For technology my 6th class students could learn how to use basic weather apps or sensors to track environmental data. They might even create digital presentations or infographics to communicate their findings. In terms of engineering, students could design and build small-scale solutions to climate problems, like creating a rainwater harvesting system or building a solar-powered device. Lastly, mathematics would play a role when students analyse data, calculate averages, or graph changes over time. I feel that the maths part is already covered well in my room so I will try to balance this by encouraging more of the science, technology and engineering activities that I have mentioned
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Hi Maura,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course.
Liston’s paper on unravelling STEM is a great reminder of the importance of joining the dots and avoiding a siloed approach to delivering meaningful STEM classes.I can see that you have taken the time to reflect on how to apply this with your sixth-class learners, and how to balance the various topics, with math less of a priority. Your plan is an excellent example of how to integrate these topics into a cohesive activity, with a solution-focused emphasis.
Learners will greatly benefit from this holistic approach, which reflects the type of thinking required to address the climate challenges we face. Best of luck with this activity in the coming academic year.
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I think this activity is important in distinguishing the differences between weather and climate in the minds of the students. I like the idea of a weather station in school as a hands on activity to observe and record weather. The findings of the weather could be integrated for Irish and a school trip to a local weather station if an airport is close by might be a nice way of reinforcing the learning objectives. Flight paths are at the mercy of the weather and the students may be interested in finding connections in learning that airport control towers monitor flight paths using ‘x’ and ‘y’ grids (coordinate plane) which they will come across in Math.
Representing and interpreting the data could be displayed in the school playground for other classes to discuss and remark on. The children could also represent their weekly weather data findings on a Friday with tv weather forecast presentations as integration with Drama.
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Hi Shane,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course. You are right, this is an important concept for learners to grasp-what is weather, and what is climate? This foundational piece is fundamental to understanding further concepts, including climate change. You have some wonderful ideas for cross-curricular links- I like the idea of visiting a local weather station to bring the career path and real work involved to life for learners, and deepen further their understanding of the topic.Drama is a fun and novel way to present the findings, and by presenting the findings weekly, it becomes a whole school event and creates further interest in this topic for all learners. Peer learning is also a wonderful extension for this activity, providing older learners with an opportunity to explain the workings of their weather station and how they take measurements to a younger class.
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In Unravelling STEM: Beyond the Acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, Liston (2018) encourages educators to consider the broader cultural, social, and pedagogical contexts that shape how STEM is taught and experienced in classrooms.
Liston argues that effective STEM education should not isolate the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics- but rather embrace their interconnectedness.
The paper highlights the importance of including critical thinking in STEM education and emphasizes that STEM education must be inclusive and accessible to all students.I recognize both the strengths and areas for growth in how STEM is integrated in my own classroom. I strive to incorporate real-world projects that combine science, technology, and math. We use digital tools for simulations and collaborative work.
I encourage students to ask questions, conduct experiments, and reflect on their findings. I plan to include more hands-on engineering challenges and design thinking tasks.************************************************************************************
The ESA Kids activities on Weather vs Climate are engaging, age-appropriate, and effectively use space as a medium to explore Earth science concepts. The visual materials and interactive elements are especially helpful for making abstract ideas—like the difference between weather and climate—more concrete and understandable for young learners.
These activities offer a great opportunity to link science with geography, mathematics (graphing temperature data), and even literacy (explaining weather reports or writing climate summaries).The satellite imagerycan spark discussions on how space technology contributes to environmental monitoring and supports our understanding. Adding simplified instructions for younger or less confident learners and extension challenges for more advanced students would make the resources more versatile. Including formative assessment tools like quizzes, exit tickets, or student reflection sheets would help teachers evaluate understanding more efficiently. -
STEM education in my 4th class classroom is hands-on, fun, and focused on developing problem-solving skills. Students learn by doing—whether it’s building simple structures, recording weather data, or using tablets for research.
It helps them understand real-world concepts through science, technology, engineering, and maths in an age-appropriate way. Most importantly, STEM encourages curiosity, teamwork, and confidence in trying out new ideas.
I would show the Ariane 6 first lift off video when learning about travelling to space and the first ever launch recorded. We could then do project work on rockets and building out own space shuttles. When learning about weather in Geography I would show my students the “Space safe Vigil” slide all about monitoring the weather and violent outbursts.
Setting Up a Weather Station for 4th Class Students- To help 4th class students understand the difference between weather and climate, I would set up a simple weather station in the schoolyard. Students would build basic tools like:
1. A Rain Gauge – made from a plastic bottle to measure daily rainfall.
2. A Wind Vane – using a straw and cardboard to show wind direction.
Each day, students would record the temperature, wind, and rainfall in a weather journal. After a few weeks, we would look for patterns and compare them to long-term climate data from a website like Met Éireann. This helps them see how weather is short-term, while climate is based on longer trends.
STEM Skills Used:
· Science – observing and measuring natural elements.
· Maths – recording data and creating simple graphs.
· Engineering – designing and building instruments.
This activity encourages hands-on learning, teamwork, and critical thinking while making science fun and relevant.
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Hi Eimear,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course.
This looks like a wonderful plan to engage your 4th-class learners. Creating the weather station and recording results over time provides ample opportunity to learn about the concepts of weather versus climate. It is also great to consider how learners can take the next step and reflect on the design of the instruments they made, their positioning and timings of recording data. How could these be improved upon and enhanced? A mindset of continuous improvement will serve learners well in STEM and beyond.
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I really liked the activity sets included in this module on both Is it weather or Climate? and also the Weather Detectives activities. Although I will be teaching Senior Infants I think we can adapt these lessons to suit the age of the children. I think introducing them to the difference between weather and climate is something that can be done. We could do this in as easy a way as discussing the differences in weather when they go on holidays and how the climate can differ in different countries compared to in Ireland. I think by keeping things simple we can give the children a good introduction to the idea of climate.
With weather as a topic I really liked the ‘Super Simple Song’ on weather that was included in the module and think this is a great way of getting the children thinking about the different types of weather we can have. I also liked the idea of having the children think about what the weather was like on their last birthdays as this can also show the children how the weather changes at different times of the year and could also tie in with a lesson on the different seasons. With the weather detectives lesson I think the children would love the idea of setting up the thermometer and checking the temperature each day. As I have small numbers in the class I think I would look at the thermometer at 3 different set times of the day. The children could be in groups with the responsibility of checking at a certain time. This would lead to discussion on how the temperature might change throughout the day. We would record our findings throughout the week and see how it has changed and I also think it would be good to do this activity again at another time of the year when the weather would be different such as the summer so that the children could see how the temperatures vary between winter and summer for example. -
Unraveling STEM really got me thinking and I realise that I have not placed as much emphasis on the engineering aspect of STEM. This is something I will be extra mindful of going forward. I found the resources from both ESA and SEAI very good. I felt they were practical and engaging. They are very in keeping with the new curriculum goals and content. I teach in a very small school so I feel I would need to use them in mixed ability groups with older children in 5th and 6th class helping the younger infants. I do feel that this approach would be best and would facilitate thematic and integrated learning approaches. I feel this would facilitate most learning overall.
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Children love being responsible for a particular activity in school and portraying all the data or evidence to all of the other students/classes. The ESA activities ‘Nose high in the sky’ and ‘weather versus climate’ allows them the opportunity to do this. These resources were very practical and age appropriate. I think the children would love the responsibility of monitoring the weather for a period of time and record their findings. The children could display the data in some area of the school which could be set up as a weather station. We could also investigate different weather lore and its meanings to display at our weather station e.g. clear moon, frost soon or red sky at night shepherds delight, red sky in the morning shepherds warning. The daily monitoring of the weather would give the children a great insight themselves as to the difference between weather and climate. The children could be taught about Ireland and its temperate climate but by recording weather findings each day they will see that weather varies from time to time but the climate is as a result of monitoring weather for years. The children could call out the weather of the day over the intercom system at school.
STEM is not an area that I do very often in my classroom but the paper and the lessons have given me great insights on how I could use it more in my classroom.-
Hi Caitriona
Welcome to the course. It’s great that this module has given you inspiration for increasing the amount of STEM work that you do in your classroom. Hopefully you will find the rest of the activities and resources useful in increasing your own confidence with the subject and helping you to find the time through integration with other subjects. Recording the weather is a great place to start with practical STEM work as it is relatively straightforward but involves so many useful STEM skills. I love the idea of the daily weather broadcast over the intercom. I’m sure the children will love taking their turns at this activity and it will really increase their confidence and communication skills.
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Lisbon stresses the importance of using authentic integrated STEM experiences which engage students in the real-word questions and the Engineering Design Process as opposed to the simple checklist style of STEM lesson which simply mentions the acronym. Meaningful STEM lessons involve applying knowledge, skills and practices from science, technology, engineering and mathematics to everyday situations. Students are active, classrooms are student-centred. Diverse learning styles are evident in real world problems. Problem-solving and logical thinking are present. So STEM is not a buzzword but a mindset.
In my classroom, I start with an open-ended question which is firstly defined, then brainstormed. Testing and analysing data will take place using the principles of EDP. The project is connected to real life issues. Discussions include social context, resource access, and ethical dimensions, ensuring STEM learning is relevant and empowering for all students. Students choose their approach, using the kits and digital tools they believe are relevant. I facilitate inquiry. instead of prescribing it, fostering divergent thinking and ownership—just as Liston advocates. Students are highly engaged, discussion is is richer and skills are transferable to other questions.
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Liston (2018) encourages educators to view STEM not as isolated subjects, but as an integrated, inquiry-based approach that promotes curiosity and problem-solving. In my classroom, STEM education is hands-on and child-led, and the ESA weather resource supports this perfectly. The “Nose Up High in the Sky” and SFI Weather vs Climate activities offer excellent opportunities to set up a simple school weather station using thermometers, anemometers, and rainfall gauges. Pupils can collect and graph data daily, fostering science (observation), technology (data logging), engineering (designing instruments), and maths (data analysis) skills. These activities help pupils explore the difference between short-term weather and long-term climate. To lead this school-wide, I would share the project across classes through a digital display board, encourage cross-curricular links (e.g., Gaeilge weather words), and organise a “Climate Week” to promote collective learning. This aligns with Liston’s call for collaborative, meaningful STEM engagement rooted in real-world contexts.
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Effective STEM education goes beyond textbooks—it thrives when students explore concepts through meaningful, real-world experiences.
In junior classes, pupils already take part in daily weather observations and discussions, which could be easily linked to the use of a school weather station. Senior students could contribute by sharing recorded data with younger classes, allowing for comparisons between real-time observations and collected information. This not only strengthens scientific understanding—such as observation and data collection—but also encourages collaboration and communication across age groups, nurturing a strong sense of whole-school engagement.
The Nose Up High in the Sky resource pack offers excellent opportunities to support this kind of learning. For senior classes, and I found the Talking About Weather lesson particularly valuable. There’s plenty of scope to build on the activity by having students explore additional weather proverbs, which can lead to rich, engaging discussions. It’s also a great chance to explore the expressive language used to describe weather—a fitting topic in Ireland, where weather often features prominently in everyday conversation.
When it comes to STEM, integrating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—rather than teaching them separately is key. Dr. Maeve Liston’s research highlights the importance of this approach, advocating for hands-on, experiential learning that ties classroom content to the world around us, making learning both relevant and inspiring.
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Activity 1:
As several other participants have mentioned, I think I would use a school activity or an outdoor event as a good hook for maximum engagement. This would work particularly well in terms of older children, as I was working through the activity myself, I was starting to think of how I could tweak it to suit a diverse sixth class next year. I would also try to integrate the different climate zones with the heritage of the students in the class and the places that they visit and travel to.
Activity 2:
I think there are great learning opportunities in activity two and love the integration of maths also. I always love when there is a chance to get outside and get involved in hands-on learning and I think Weather Detectives would be great for this. It would be important to discuss the different variables that allow for accurate readings and maybe have a variety of different sized temperatures depending on the age of students and or differentiation.
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Hi Ellen
Welcome to the course. Using the heritage of the children in the class or places that people have travelled to is a great idea for introducing the topic of climate zones. This could lead to great discussions and understanding, particularly if you send children home to discuss it with their parents and feed back to the class. Recording the weather is always a great hands on activity. It is simple to set up and easily understandable and accessible for all ages and abilities but also leads to some great understanding and skills development with a great practical maths component.
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The ESA activities—especially Weather vs Climate provide engaging, hands-on learning. These can be supported further in the classroom by allowing the children to observe the weather daily. Younger students might begin by measuring daily temperatures with thermometers, while older students could expand data collection to include rainfall and cloud cover. This inquiry based approach would allow the children to learn more.
To lead the school in exploring weather and climate, I would implement a whole-school inquiry project based on the module’s content. Students could collaborate across year levels, present their results and learning during assemblies. This initiative would encourage shared learning, spark curiosity, and build a solid foundation in environmental science.-
Your ideas are really well thought out, especially how you’ve differentiated the activities for younger and older students. Using daily weather observations is a great way to make learning tangible and relevant, and I love how you’ve emphasized inquiry-based learning—it’s such a powerful approach for developing critical thinking skills.
The whole-school inquiry project is a fantastic initiative. Having students collaborate across year groups and present their findings during assemblies not only reinforces their learning but also helps build confidence and communication skills. It’s also a great way to create a strong sense of community and shared purpose around environmental science.
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Establishing a weather station in a primary school in Ireland, supported by The Nose High Up in the Sky and Weather vs Climate resources, provides a practical and engaging way for students to connect with their environment. By recording daily data such as temperature, rainfall, and wind speed, pupils develop essential skills in observation, data collection, analysis, and interpretation.
Leading this project comes with challenges—ensuring consistent data gathering, handling equipment in Ireland’s often unpredictable weather, and keeping students motivated. However, the educational benefits are wide-ranging. In Science, students explore weather systems; in Maths, they work with graphs and calculate averages; in Geography, they investigate the local climate; and in English, they can write weather reports or personal weather diaries.
Involving other classes fosters collaboration, communication, and leadership skills. Overall, running a school weather station encourages scientific curiosity, nurtures a sense of responsibility, and supports meaningful cross-curricular learning.
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Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (Liston 2018)
This paper by Maeve Liston goes beyond just doing random science or tech activities and really gets you thinking about what proper STEM learning looks like. It gives practical ideas for using the engineering design process, which is great for helping kids solve real-world problems in a hands-on way.
STEM education in my classroom is often fragmented. On reflection my science lessons tend to focus on hands-on experiments and observations. Maths is taught everyday with a strong emphasis on numeracy, but it’s not always linked to real-world problems or to other STEM areas. Technology -We have access to tablets and laptops but we mostly use them for research,maths games or basic tasks. A couple of times a year I will integrate stem with challenges during maths week or engineers week. We usually also have a visit from someone at Regeneron or Dell that have a stem challenge for the children with an emphasise on the engineering design process aspect. Despite my own interest in the area of STEM, I feel with time constraints and such a busy curriculum, it is difficult to engage in full stem activities on a regular basis.Activity 1
I like the way it helps clarify a common misconception between weather and climate. The use of real-life examples (like birthdays and photo memories) makes it age-appropriate and engaging for students. The group work and discussion prompts encourage peer learning and critical thinking. I also like the extension activity with the Köppen climate zones map as it gives a nice geographical and visual element for older or more able pupils.
How I would use it in class:
• Start with a class chat about weather today vs. weather on their last birthdays.
• Use printed images and matching tasks in small groups for a hands-on sorting activity.
• Encourage children to use their own words when defining weather and climate.
In addition I would-
• I would differentiate the worksheet by using more visuals to help lower-literacy learners grasp the concept more easily.
• I might also use a short video or animation to introduce the terms in a child-friendly way.
Activity 2
I like the way activity 2 uses hands-on, real-world science as using a thermometer gives kids an active role in data collection. It reinforces data handling and graphing skills from the maths curriculum. This activity also Introduces the concept of averages in a practical, meaningful way. It encourages teamwork and shared responsibility.
How I would use it in class:
• Assign small daily roles (data collectors, recorders, etc.) for one week.
• Display the class temperature chart on the wall and update it together.
• Compare our data to national averages using Met Éireann’s website to make it local and relevant.
In addition I would provide a “weather journal” template to encourage pupils to write a few sentences about what the weather felt like each day. -
After reading Unravelling STEM: Beyond the Acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, I found it to be both informative and thought-provoking. It offered valuable insights into the practicalities of STEM education and prompted me to reflect on how I integrate STEM into my own teaching. Over time, I’ve developed a more integrated approach, aiming to make learning meaningful and connected across subjects. This paper, along with the resources and strategies I’ve gained through this module, has given me new tools and ideas to continue building on that foundation.
I was particularly drawn to the “Weather or Climate?” activity. Its simplicity and clarity make it an excellent introduction to a potentially confusing concept. It allows pupils to grasp the fundamental difference between weather and climate, encouraging thoughtful discussion from the outset. I would use this regularly as a talk-based activity to spark daily conversations and build critical thinking.
The “Weather Detectives” activity also stood out to me. I love that it gives students ownership over their learning by having them collect and interpret their own data. It naturally opens the door to cross-curricular integration — from comparing climates in different countries, to creating weather-themed poetry in literacy, or designing simple weather instruments in visual arts.
On reflection, these kinds of activities highlight just how flexible and impactful STEM learning can be when thoughtfully embedded into daily practice. By placing students at the centre of their learning and connecting STEM concepts across the curriculum, we give them opportunities to explore, question, and make sense of the world around them.-
Hi Marie,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course. Dr. Liston’s paper certainly is thought provoking, and I can see from your comments that you have given it and your STEM delivery considerable reflection.I am delighted to see that over time you have developed a more integrated approach, and I do hope you get to incorporate some of the ideas into your plans for the coming academic year.
I love how you mention putting students at the center of their learning and connecting concepts-we have come a long way from a hands off, teacher only demonstration of old, to a holistic, hands on exploration of themes, a breaking down of subject silos., and opportunities for all learners to participate and grow to their full potential.
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I love that these activities provide an excellent opportunity to incorporate outdoor learning and student engagement with real-world science. In our school, we are fortunate to have access to both a garden and an outdoor classroom, which could serve as ideal locations for placing the equipment to track the weather e.g. thermometer. Additionally, involving students in choosing the best spot helps develop their observational and critical thinking skills. To enhance the activity, I would also have pupils present a weekly weather report on our school podcast. This gives them a purpose for collecting and analyzing data, while also building communication and presentation skills. They could report temperature trends, compare them with local forecasts, and even include tips on dressing for the weather—making science both practical and fun. It would also be a fun interactive activity for the class to include graphs and charts displayed in the classroom, school display board or shared on the school website. Over time, we could even compare seasonal changes or link temperature trends to topics in geography and climate science.
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Hi Emer
Your outdoor classroom sounds like a great place to place your weather station and record the weather. It is fantastic that you have a school podcast and I love the idea of adding a weekly weather report where the pupils can present their findings from analysing the weekly data. The tips on dressing for the weather are a great idea as that is something that Irish people are particularly bad at. I also love the idea of expanding the reports over time to include more levels of information in the podcast or in displays and the school website. As the children in your class expand their own knowledge on climate and climate change, they can be educating others in the school through interpreting and sharing what they have discovered
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Lots of great resources here to aid teaching and explaining weather and climate. The videos, songs and slides outline the differences in a very clear way. Weather v Climate has very useful activities and links. Creating a weather station will provide the children with great opportunities to engage in problem solving in a fun manner and to work collaboratively to achieve their aims. We have a small planting area in our school yard, so this would be the ideal place to set up the weather station. As far as possible we would make our own instruments as outlined in ‘Nose High Up in the Sky’ and the wonderful worksheets attached to it. Children use thermometers to record daily temperature. Rain gauges and anemometers could be made using simple everyday objects and data would be collected from them. I think it would be interesting to link with a teacher in a different county or indeed a different country to compare data collected. This data and findings could be presented or shared at assembly or on notice boards or in a school newsletter. Lots of maths, science, geography, engineering, technology and literacy covered in these wonderful activities.
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It’s important to teach young children the difference between weather and climate because it helps them build a clear and accurate understanding of the world around them. I think that teaching children the the distinction between short-term (weather) and long-term patterns (climate) helps children with their critical thinking and allows children to develop reasoning skills and think about cause and effect over time. There was definitely lots of food for thought on how to bring the concept of weather detectives into the classroom on a daily basis- depending on the year group you are teaching. I like the idea of role play as meteorologists where children could set up a pretend weather studio.
Children could also take turns being a weather reporter, using maps and props to explain the day’s weather and record their “broadcasts” for fun review.-
Hi Rachel,
There has been lots of great ideas both across this module and in the forum for teaching the weather, regardless of what class you are in, pupils love to explore the weather and be a weather reporter whether in Irish or English. I have used A3 maps with symbols in my class for pupils to create their own weather forecast and then present it on the smartboard or using the green screen. They can use lots of topic specific language in their forecasts and also make meaningful connections with the lessons on the weather.
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I found some many of these ideas to be very practical and adaptable to the classroom , all of which would enhance my teaching of STEM. This activity really highlighted to me the need for children to learn and understand the difference between weather and climate . Knowing the difference between weather and climate gives children the tools to become more curious, thoughtful, and environmentally aware learners. I also really like the idea of introducing and embedding weather detectives in my classroom. I currently teach senior infants so from September I’m going to introduce a daily weather routine by creating a weather chart and each morning, choosing a “lead detective” who will looks out the window, feels the air ,and chooses a weather symbol (sun, cloud, rain, etc.) to place on the chart. It’s about starting at a young age and building on children’s experiences.
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Hi Rachel,
Thanks for your course, and welcome to the course. I really like your idea of a lead detective for reporting on the weather, and I am sure it is a role all your learners will be eager to have! Senior infants will benefit from the repetition of this activity and a growing understanding of how weather and climate differ. They will develop their observational and reporting skills through their roles as weather detectives, and it’s also great that it offers an impromptu movement break, too!
I couldn’t agree with you more about starting young! Each year is an opportunity to revisit prior learning and deepen and broaden the scope of the topic.
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The integration of weather data collection into our senior school curriculum could be described as a truly enriching experience, bridging multiple subjects including mathematics, geography, science, and ICT. This year, our Green School committee could engage in comprehensive data collection project. Using electronic sensors to monitor both soil and roof-level conditions, students could actively participate in collecting real-time weather data, which they could then analyzed digitally.
This could broaden their ICT skills but also enable them to engage with meaningful data directly linked to their school environment. The ability to access the data from home further increased their involvement and facilitated independent learning outside the classroom. By relating the project to their immediate surroundings, students are able to see the tangible impact of environmental factors, thus deepening their understanding of sustainability and climate change.
The hands-on nature of the project, combined with its cross-curricular focus, sparked a deeper interest in environmental sciences and data analysis. Students developed a greater appreciation for how technology can be used to monitor and address real-world issues. This initiative could lay a strong foundation for further exploration into environmental studies and sustainable practices in our school community.
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I really enjoyed completing the activities in this module. Is it weather or climate and weather detectives. I feel these lessons can be varied for every age group child in primary school. It is important to allow children to learn the differences between climate and weather. Children are introduced to weather at an early age- They learn the vocabulary associated with weather and every infant child’s day starts with a discussion of weather and recording it on the board in school. I would include the lovely super simple songs on weather from this module in my lesson. I also love the simple idea of discussing with the children what the weather was like on their last birthdays. It also allows the children to realise how weather can vary at different times of the year even some seasons can have different weather. We will also discuss climate and how different continents have different climates and weather.
During the weather detective lesson I would get the children to check the temperature every day using thermometers. The children would discuss the different temperatures and can compare the weather- cooler, hotter, warmer, etc.
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Hi Sharon
I agree that weather and climate are topics that are relevant for every class at primary school. As you, said observing and recording the weather are activities that happen to some extent in every infant class, but more detailed observations of the weather can be revisited in older classes where they can design their own instruments and record extra parameters such as cloud cover, humidity and air pressure. The idea of climate too can be introduced from an early age through discussions on seasons and weather in different countries before they actually cover climate in an older class.
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Hi Sharon
I agree that weather and climate are topics that are relevant for every class at primary school. As you, said observing and recording the weather are activities that happen to some extent in every infant class, but more detailed observations of the weather can be revisited in older classes where they can design their own instruments and record extra parameters such as cloud cover, humidity and air pressure. The idea of climate too can be introduced from an early age through discussions on seasons and weather in different countries before they actually cover climate in an older class.
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In my classroom this year (Senior Infants) the children work in small groups with concrete materials so they can carry out their practical tasks by thinking critically and learning through investigation.
Activity 1: Is it weather or climate?
This activity was enjoyable and will be relatable to all children. I feel that relating the weather to the children’s birthdays will help the children understand the difference between weather and climate. I also feel the videos that are provided are age appropriate and particularly useful when explaining the difference between weather and climate for all children.
Activity 2: Weather Detectives
This activity can also be differentiated so that even children as young as Junior Infants will be able to carry it out. The children can help develop a weather station to mount the thermometer so that it will be able to be used by other classes in the school and there will be no fear that the heat from the children’s hands will change the temperature, the results will be constant and reliable. This will help the children become critical thinkers as they will have to decide on the best area for the weather station. They will become hands on learners as they will have to design and make the actual station.
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I would always aim for an inquiry-based learning environment that puts emphasis on hands-on exploration and collaboration. Students would engage in open-ended challenges with me the teacher, acting as a facilitator, guiding students to explore concepts rather than delivering direct instructions.
The resources have great, ready-to-use ideas for teaching about weather. One fun idea is using kids’ birthdays to talk about weather. —looking at photos from past birthdays and grouping kids by their birth months to see how weather changes over the year. This makes learning personal and helps kids see how weather is always different.
The video about climate zones gives children a clear way to tell the difference between weather (what’s happening now) and climate (the usual weather over time). After watching, they can explain why certain statements are about weather or climate.
Another good activity is measuring temperature. A nice project could be setting up a class weather station in September and checking the weather at the same time every week.
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The activities provided in the Nose Up High resource provide lovely opportunities for students to begin their study of weather and lots of opportunities to use the language associated with weather. Linking the starter activities to proverbs they may have previously heard used by relatives is a lovely hook to get them engaged and curious about the topic. The Weather V Climate resource is an excellent way for older students to begin to look at differentiating between both topics. As an extension activity, I would ask students who have clearly grasped the topic to now create their own weather or climate topic cards, and try them out on their relatives at home, to really allow them to build on this knowledge.
When this knowledge is embedded, I would build on activity to really focus on STEM across the board with my students. Having already studied the science behind the topic, they could work on building a weather station at the school, collaborating with younger students, hosting masterclasses to build a rain gauge, anemometer etc., creating digital projects that track their data and finally presenting their analysis and findings to their parents, to show learning across the topic.
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Hi Jessica
Welcome to the course. Thanks for sharing your feedback on the lesson Nose Up High. I agree that there are lots of opportunities to develop vocabulary and to use the vocab in meaningful contexts. Having completed this activity with my own class it allow for lots of integration with English and Drama for vocabulary development.
I really like how to plan to develop the pupils’ knowledge of climate through the development of their own topic cards to share knowledge at home. It is a great way to explore the knowledge and understanding of the pupils and to build home-school links.
There are lots of great resources across this course, I hope you enjoy the course.
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Hi Jessica, I like the idea of enabling the children to present their data to their parents. This would really give them something to aim towards and allow them to become mini scientists. Weather is the most talked about subject in the world and the children being able to discuss it with scientific authority would make them feel valued and important.
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The resource ‘Nose high up in the sky’ to foster an interest in weather and weather patterns in the children’s local area. Often when children are introduced to the weather it is through the medium of television and whilst informative they often struggle to see how it relates to them. By facilitating children to enquire, predict, build and test their own weather instruments children can see first hand how weather is constantly changing. I would start by encouraging the children to try and figure out what all the proverbs have in common (I would give children a selection to read), I would then get them to question are these true? have they ever heard any of them?. This will spark a good conversation about weather and climate and may even enable children to discuss the differences in weather in Ireland vs where they or their parents are originally from(we may even learn new proverbs!).
I would then break children into groups to make their own rain gauge and anemometer. They can also set up a diary to record their findings over the course of a week.
This lesson can bring in many elements of STEM: For older children they can work out the average rainfall per day and develop a digital chart to show the weather pattern over the course of a week. Younger children can make graphs to show their findings. Children can also look to enhance or add other instruments for weather measurement e.g. adding a wind chime to record the sound (is it constant or sparse).
For children in 5th/6th class, children could pair with a school in a different country and discuss differences in weather and climate in their country and see what weather patterns they produce versus their own findings.
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Hi Stephanie
Thanks for sharing lot of ideas on exploring the weather across different classes. Pupils love weather proverbs and weather lore. I have asked my own class to chat to their older relatives about weather proverbs and they loved it, I think this oral part of history is often forgotten and it can be brought to the fore when exploring weather in Geography.
Through creating their own weather station the pupils begin to take ownership of their own learning and will also get to work with their own real life data making graphs as you have said. I also like how you plan to team up with a school in another country to explore weather patterns and climate there. This would be fascinating for the pupils.
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Liston’s paper reminds me that STEM isn’t just a group of subjects but it’s about students thinking and acting like engineers and scientists. By designing classroom experiences around inquiry, hands-on design challenges, and reflection, I strive to bring her vision to life: nurturing young thinkers who are curious, creative, and capable of tackling real-world problems through STEM.
As a 4th class teacher, I thought that the SFI and ESA resources would be extremely useful for helping my pupils understand the difference between weather and climate. The SFI “Weather vs Climate” PDF offers clear, age-appropriate explanations that I can easily adapt for classroom discussions. It helped me clarify that weather refers to daily conditions, while climate refers to long-term patterns.
The ESA “Nose up High in the Sky” guide gave me practical ideas for setting up a simple school weather station. Using household items, we can make a rain gauge, wind vane, and thermometer station. I’ll have the pupils collect weather data daily for a few weeks, and we’ll chart the results together. This will give them a real sense of how weather changes regularly, while also opening up a discussion about how climate is measured over time.-
I completely agree Isobel.. I really like how you’re connecting STEM with real-world, hands-on learning—it’s such a powerful way to spark curiosity. I also found the “Weather vs Climate” resource really clear and practical, especially for helping younger students grasp those tricky concepts. Your idea of setting up a simple weather station sounds fantastic—it’s a great way to make abstract ideas concrete and memorable!
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The ESA resource ‘Nose Up High in the Sky’ offers hands-on weather activities. The first activity explores weather proverbs like ‘Red sky at night…’ encouraging students to discuss their meanings and scientific accuracy. I think this is an excellent activity which supports oral language development and introduces basic atmospheric science in an engaging way. In the second activity, pupils use their senses to observe the weather, describing temperature, wind, clouds and precipitaion. This exploratory learning builds vocabulary and connects everyday experiences to formal weather concepts. While also lending itself to mindfulness and observation skills. The third activity involves building simple weather instruments: a rain gauge, thermometer station and anemometer. Using recycled materials, which also links in with many of the Green Flag themes, students work in groups to collect weather data over a week. I think this is a great way to integrate STEM learning through measurement, data handling. We use Chromebooks in school, so we could also compare the results with online forecasts too.
I think these activities are a great resource for classrooms as they are low-cost, adaptable and encourage teamwork and inquiry-based learning.
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In my junior infants classroom, STEM education is playful, hands-on, and rooted in real-world problem-solving. I integrate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics in a way that fosters curiosity, creativity, and collaboration. My pupils explore scientific concepts by investigating materials, observing nature, and asking questions about the world around them. They act as mini engineers—designing and building with blocks, recycled items, or natural materials—learning to think critically and test their ideas. Technology is introduced through age-appropriate tools, such as interactive whiteboards, simple coding apps, or digital drawing, helping children record and share their discoveries. Maths is woven into everything we do, from measuring ingredients in baking to sorting autumn leaves by size or colour. Through collaborative tasks and inquiry-based activities, my pupils develop problem-solving skills and learn that mistakes are part of learning. STEM in my classroom is meaningful, child-led, and filled with wonder.
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Hi Katriona
Welcome to the course. Your classroom sound like a wonderful environment for fostering STEM skills in a hands on and interactive way and you clearly understand the importance of inquiry based STEM education and weaving STEM thinking throughout everything the children do. I hope you find lots of inspiration in the modules of this course to help you continue to encourage STEM thinking among your pupils and encouraging them to become Scientists, Engineers and Mathematical thinkers
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I would use both the the Nose High Up in the Sky and Weather vs Climate resources in my classroom supplement project work on the topic of Weather.
Following a block of lessons on weather, climate, its origin and importance we would then move in to a practical section of creating our own rain gauge, anemometer and project boards to display our results and findings. I would organise pupils to work in groups in class and encourage pupils to bring in items from home to reuse with our Green Flag status in mind. They would first design and label their measurements before creating.
We would choose a suitable position in the school that is accessible, visible to all and not overly sheltered to gain a true recording. We would create our measuring devices in a cross curricular link to Art, maths, English, science and geography. Later we could create a link to English and Drama by composing and enacting weather forecasts- we could use a green screen to link to ICT. We could overcome one challenge by benefitting from help from our caretaker to ensure our structures are solid and weather proof!
A beautiful art activity I have seen is to colour code the weather and record each days weather forecast with a simple strip of the corresponding colour. This creates a beautiful, colourful record of weather keeping and an easy activity all pupils can involve themselves in.
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Hi Mary,
Welcome to the course. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this module. I agree that the weather station would be best built after a series of lessons on the weather and climate in order to give the pupils more understanding of these concepts and they can make real-life connections as they create their own weather station. Creating their own weather forecasts using a green screen is always great fun, I have tried this as Gaeilge too to support language and vocab development.
I really like your idea to colour code the weather and it would make it an accessible way to record the weather for all pupils. It is a great idea and would make a beautiful weather chart in any classroom.
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Activity 1: Is it weather or climate?
This is such a lovely lesson which I think would work very well in 2nd/3rd Class. It would help to clarify the difference between weather and climate in the children’s minds. I like the idea of jogging their memories as to what the weather was like on their last birthday, especially where a few children had birthdays in the same month – they would see quite quickly that weather is ever changing and cannot be generalised by month or time of year! Classifying the statements into the Weather and Climate categories is a simple and effective pair activity. The children are then asked to write a simple sentence summing up what the terms Weather and Climate mean, it’s easy to check for understanding here – weather should imply ‘short term’ (hours or days) and climate ‘ long term’ (years). Finally, there is a nice discussion idea to conclude the lesson with. -
https://teachnet.ie/sfi/pdf/PR54_Weather_vs_Climate.pdf
The “Weather vs Climate” teaching resource is an excellent classroom tool because it combines hands-on activities with real-world data and critical thinking. It effectively supports cross-curricular learning, blending science, geography, mathematics, and literacy. The use of sorting tasks, temperature logging, and online climate models ensures engagement for diverse learning styles.
The resource also promotes active learning and student collaboration, especially in the Climate Reporters activity, which asks students to interpret future data and present findings—a great way to build confidence in public speaking and research.
To further enhance the resource, teachers could incorporate digital storytelling or creative projects (like posters or short videos) based on students’ climate findings. Linking the activities to local environmental issues or inviting a guest speaker, such as a meteorologist, could deepen relevance and community connection. -
Dr. Maeve Liston’s paper ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics’ really explains and highlights the importance of an integrated approach to STEM in the classroom. It highlights the importance of Engineering Design Process and how engineer really pulls science, maths and technology together. Reflecting on STEM in my own class I probably don’t integrate the various aspects of STEM together as much as I could- I am probably more confident in teaching the Science and Maths parts and less confident at the Technology and Engineering aspects.
I really like the two activities on ‘Is it weather or climate?’ and ‘Weather Detectives’. Pupils hear so much about climate and climate change and yet most of them do not understand the difference between climate and weather.
I have previously made weather stations with my class, however the ideas given really made me think about how I could expand what I have been doing with them. I also like the songs and activities for younger classes. I am the Green Schools coordinator and I could see myself using these lessons as a basis for a whole school action based around monitoring our weather. We already have a school garden so it would be ideal to have a weather station there all year round and to add weather bulletins to our Green Schools board.-
Hi Nicola,
I agree with you and I will be more aware of applying all aspects of STEM- science, technology, engineering and maths to future projects. I would also like to expand on previous lessons by using a whole school approach and collaboration between Junior and Senior classes. We participated in the Incredible Edibles programme and I would like to incorporate the weather station alongside this during the year.
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Unravelling STEM. This is a very useful resource as it outlines that STEM lessons should incorporate the following;
• Allowing for innovation and critical thinking (Jolly 2017).
• Integrating real-world, rigorous and relevant learning experiences for students (Vasquez, Comer and Sneider 2013).
• Inspiring creativity, problem solving inquisitive thinking, and teamwork (Roberts 2012).
• Integrating and applying a deeper level knowledge and understanding of mathematics & science to create technologies and solutions for real-world problems using engineering design approach (Jolly 2017).
Some lessons only contain elements of the above and not characteristics. We as educators should endeavour to maintain the full characteristics of a STEM lesson.Looking at the ESA lesson for children on measuring air temperature. The Met Station should be in a place that is accessible to the whole school community. It should also be in a shaded area so the sun isn’t directly heating the thermometer. The temperature should be taken at the same time every day.
The ESA lesson highlight that weather conditions we are referring to short periods of time, such as hours, days or weeks; when we talk about climate we are implying long periods, such as 30 years or more. A good way for children to understand the difference between this is to ask their parents what the weather was like on their birthday over the years.The Nose High up in the Sky is an excellent activity because;
• There are cross curricular links with Geography, Maths and Science.
• It incorporates taking weather measurements of wind speed, rain fall and air temperature.
• The weather station is easy and cost effective to make- thermometer, jar for rain measurement and plastic cups to measure wind.
• The whole school can use the data in different ways ie Infant classes can compare and contrast the rain measurement. Senior classes can calculate he differences in temperature. -
I have the thoroughly enjoyed working on Module 1 Weather & Climate. The activities are very engaging. I will be setting up a weather station in my classroom with my class in September. The video excerpts are perfect. The resources are excellent.
There is great scope for cross curricular work, integrating language, maths, geography etc. We place great emphasis on STEM activities and work like this will enhance our lessons. I see opportunity for collobarotion with pupils in other schools, comparing weather patterns, for example. I look forward to giving the pupils the opportunity to scource materials for and to make their own weather recording instruments where possible. The opportunity to record & graph data collected is invaluable.
The TEAL tool is fascinating. I forsee it being investigated. Links to such technology bring learning to life. I love the idea of introducing weather lore into the unit of work.I teach in a Gaelscoil. I will be translating content form the resources & lesson plans into Irish. Are there resources linked to this module available in Irish?
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The ESA “Teach with Space: Weather vs Climate” resource is a great way to help my 5th class pupils learn the difference between weather and climate through hands-on activities. I’d use it to set up a simple school weather station where pupils record daily temperatures and weather conditions. They could work in teams to gather data, make graphs, and spot patterns, which ties in well with maths and science. The activities also bring in geography and digital skills as pupils explore climate zones and use online tools to look at future climate predictions.
This would be a whole-class project with everyone taking turns collecting data and sharing results. It’s a brilliant chance to involve the wider school too and pupils could share findings in school assemblies, newsletters, or display boards. It encourages teamwork and leadership as the class works together to understand how weather and climate affect our lives. The resource is easy to follow, low-cost, and perfect for building STEM skills in a fun and meaningful way.
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Hi Katie,
I’m also teaching 5th class and really like your idea of involving the wider school community and using display boards to share findings—I’ll definitely add that to my lessons. The link you made with geography and digital skills is also great. It’s such a practical way to build STEM learning.
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Hi Katie
I really enjoyed reading your post. I think setting up a school weather station is such a brilliant way to bring these concepts to life for pupils and the idea of involving the wider school community is something I’d love to try as well. It’s a great way to show pupils that their learning has purpose beyond the classroom.
I also liked how you connected the activities to digital skills and climate zones, it’s a smart way to expand the learning beyond just recording data. Using online tools to explore climate predictions would definitely spark curiosity and lead to some great class discussions. Thanks for sharing such practical ideas/
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Hi Katie,
I love the idea of setting up a school weather station – this would be a brilliant way of getting other classes involved in the activity. Perhaps older classes could get involved with helping younger classes in helping them to make and use anemometers etc. I like all the cross-curricular links that you made, and the idea of making school newsletters and display boards. The children would enjoy playing an active role in designing these, perhaps even making a weather blog for the school website.
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Activities 1 and 2 from the “Weather vs Climate” resource are excellent for developing pupils’ understanding of the key differences between short-term weather and long-term climate patterns. In Activity 1, students classify scenarios as either weather or climate, which builds critical thinking and reinforces terminology in a clear, relatable way. In Activity 2, the “Weather Detectives” activity encourages observation and deduction, helping pupils use evidence to form conclusions—an essential scientific skill.
For 5th class, these activities are well-pitched but could be enhanced by incorporating more visual aids, such as weather maps, real climate graphs, or short video clips. This would support different learning styles and deepen understanding. It would also be beneficial to integrate local weather data (perhaps gathered via a class weather station) to connect learning to students’ own environment.
To extend the learning, I would pair these activities with a mini-project, where students create weather diaries or climate comparison posters using their findings
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Having read Unravelling STEM by Liston (2018), I found it encouraged me to think more critically about what real STEM education looks like. It’s not just about ticking off the science, technology, engineering and maths boxes, but about finding meaningful ways to connect these areas through hands-on, inquiry-based learning.
Looking at Activities 1 and 2, I can already see how well they could work in a classroom. The first activity, where pupils compare weather on past birthdays, is a simple but effective way to tackle misconceptions about the difference between weather and climate. I think children would really enjoy this personal connection and it would spark great class discussion.
Activity 2, Weather Detectives, would be a lovely way to bring scientific investigation into the everyday. I can imagine pupils being very engaged in deciding where to place thermometers and thinking about fairness in testing.
To build on this, I would love to lead a whole-school inquiry project around weather and climate. Pupils across different classes could collect weather data, share findings on a class blog and collaborate on climate-themed projects. This would promote shared learning, curiosity and a stronger understanding of environmental science across the school community.-
Hi Megan
I’m glad that you found Maeve Liston’s paper useful and that it has encouraged you to think more about how you can encourage STEM thinking and exploration in your classroom. A whole school weather and climate project is a good idea. There is so much learning involved in the collection of weather data and the collection of weather measurements, making of instruments, weather reports and blogs and analysis of weather and climate data could be differentiated for younger and older classes with collaboration between younger and older students.
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I completely agree that Unravelling STEM made me reflect more deeply on what meaningful STEM education actually involves. I liked how you pointed out the importance of connecting the different STEM areas through hands-on, inquiry-based learning, that really stood out to me too. Your idea of a whole-school inquiry project on weather and climate sounds fantastic! It would be such a brilliant way to get pupils collaborating and applying their learning in real-world contexts. I also think using birthdays in Activity 1 is such a clever way to make the learning personal and engaging.
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The paper by Liston (2018) explains the importance of children developing their creativity, problem-solving, critical thinking and communication skills through STEM-based lessons. These STEM skills would be used and developed in both Activities 1 and 2. In Activity 1 of the ‘Weather vs Climate’ resources, I like the collaborative approach taken in getting children to work in pairs to discuss if each statement refers to weather or climate. Perhaps for writing the definition of weather and climate they could use iPads to research these definitions. For Activity 2, I love the investigative nature of getting children to measure and record air temperatures. This activity develops children’s critical thinking and communication skills by getting them to think about and discuss all the different factors that need to be considered when measuring and recording temperatures each day. This activity could be extended further by getting children to analyse wind speed and getting them to design and create their own anenometers.
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I really like your take on the two activities—especially how you highlight the development of key STEM skills. Using iPads for researching definitions is a great way to bring in digital literacy, and I agree that the collaborative aspect of Activity 1 helps with communication and teamwork. Your idea to extend Activity 2 by including wind speed and having students design their own anemometers is fantastic—it adds an extra layer of hands-on learning and creativity. That kind of extension really deepens engagement and makes the learning more meaningful.
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Dr. Liston’s paper ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics’ prompts us as teachers to clearly reflect on what STEM means and how each element is as important as the other. In order for an activity to be truly STEM, integration across the four elements is essential. Engineering is a vital approach which helps binds together science, maths and technology. I found the pen analogy helpful in looking at technology not only as ‘a plug in’ but a manmade device that fulfils a human needs or want.
In First Class, my pupils measured rain fall using a class made rain gauge. We also collaborated with Third Class. First Class read the temperature each day and Third Class took the results over a few weeks and analysed the data using graphs. In addition to this I would like to set up a school Met. Station. I think the idea of a whole school weather and climate project is excellent. This is a great way to promote outdoor learning. By encouraging children to become weather detectives, they are developing problem solving and critical thinking skills also. It gives an opportunity for collaborative learning experiences by allowing groups to design and create weather instruments. Pupils can monitor and record weather conditions using their thermometer or anemometers each day and the compare results. There is lots of potential linkage with the Green Schools and use of the school garden.
I found the ESA resources very practical. I look forward to using the ‘Nose Up high in the Sky’ activities. There is potential for linkage with Gaeilge, history and the local weather proverbs. Grandparents and older people often have great sayings relating to the weather. -
Dr. Maeve Liston’s paper ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the Acronym’ really helped me understand the value of taking an integrated approach to STEM in the classroom. It especially highlighted how the Engineering Design Process brings science, maths, and technology together. Reflecting on my own teaching, I realise I tend to focus more on the science and maths parts of STEM, and I’m less confident when it comes to the technology and engineering elements.
I really like how Activity 1 starts by clearly focusing on the difference between weather and climate – it’s such an important foundation, and getting that sorted early on helps everything else make more sense. I also liked the idea, which others have pointed out too, of using the children’s birthdays to spark interest. It’s a great way to make it personal and engaging, especially for younger pupils. Asking them to describe weather and climate in their own words is also a brilliant idea – it really helps show how much they’ve understood. I think the Climate Zones video is a great tool as well for introducing the topic in a fun, accessible way.
Activity 2 looks like something pupils would really enjoy. It’s hands-on and quite detailed, which is great, although I’d probably need to adapt it slightly to suit the classes I teach. In my experience, students can sometimes struggle with creating graphs, particularly when it comes to scales and accuracy, but because they’re involved in collecting the data themselves, I think that could help them feel more invested in getting it right. -
After completing Activities 1 and 2 from the Weather vs Climate resource, I found them very useful and practical for classroom use. Activity 1, which asks pupils to distinguish between weather and climate using images and statements, works well as a discussion prompt. It really helps children make that important distinction and encourages observation and reasoning.
Activity 2, Weather Detectives, is hands-on and gives pupils an opportunity to collect and analyse real data. I would use this with my class as part of a mini-project, maybe tracking temperature over two weeks and creating simple graphs or charts from the data. It links well with science and maths and gives the children a sense of real-world purpose.
To improve the activities, I’d suggest adding a digital extension — maybe using weather apps or online forecasts to compare their results. Overall, both activities are engaging and offer strong curriculum links across SESE and STEM. -
After reading Dr Maeve Liston’s (2018) paper ‘Unravelling STEM: Beyond the acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics’, it made me reflect on what STEM really means and how important it is for pupils to engage in hands on, inquiry based learning and not just learning from a book/Powerpoint.
After completing activities 1 and 2, I found them to be both engaging STEM activities. I think Activity 1: ‘Is it Weather or Climate’ would support pupils differentiate between weather and climate. I like the element of blending pupil’s birthday weather memories and climate zone maps as it makes it both relatable and personal for the children as well as reinforcing children’s global awareness.
I found Activity 2 ‘Weather Detectives’ to be a great, hands on activity which would support pupil’s critical thinking, measurement skills and how they interpret data. I would love to use this activity in my classroom and have the children record the temperature at lunch time each day for a couple of weeks.
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The ESA Climate Detectives and SFI’s Weather vs Climate resources provide practical and engaging activities that work well in the classroom. Setting up a weather station in the school grounds helps students learn how to observe and record weather, and understand how it’s different from climate, which is based on long-term patterns.
These activities support important STEM skills like collecting data, working as a team, asking questions, and solving problems. I would use these resources by involving students in regular weather monitoring and encouraging them to compare their results over time. To lead the school, I would set up a student group to help share findings during class presentations, school assemblies, or on a school website or noticeboard. This would help build a shared understanding of weather and climate and allow students and teachers to work together to explore the topic, encouraging everyone to think about environmental issues in a hands-on way.
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Hi Roisin,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course.
I am delighted to see that you plan on using these resources by involving students in monitoring and reporting. This is a great way to develop STEM skills. Learners who come to understand the differences between weather and climate lay a fundamental foundation for beginning a conversation on climate change, etc.
I love how you plan to broadcast this information across several platforms, from school assemblies to the website. This will provide learners with a wonderful opportunity to develop their communication skillset and connect with the broader school community.
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ESA activities such as ‘Nose Up High in the Sky’ and ‘Weather vs Climate’ provide dynamic, hands-on learning opportunities. To foster school-wide engagement with weather and climate, I would launch a collaborative inquiry project using the ESA module’s resources. Students from different year levels could work together, share their observations during assemblies or on digital platforms, and take responsibility for managing the weather station. This approach encourages a culture of shared learning, sparks curiosity, and builds a strong foundation in environmental science. Some ideas I would aim to utilise are getting the students to create weather journals, weather station. I would also try to integrate technology and get the children to create a weather station/channel with short videos. These videos could use green screens to really bring the lesson to life and allow children to immerse themselves in various types of weather.
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HI Gary,
Thanks for your post and welcome to the course.
I really like your plan to foster school wide engagement in this activity with a collaborative inquiry project. It’s a wonderful opportunity for peer learning as senior classes present and showcase how to use the weather station, measure and report. Like you said, this builds a strong foundation in environmental science-a critical area for us all to understand.
What a fun and exciting idea to create a weather channel making use of green screen technology! It’s a great segue to discuss the importance of communications in the sciences, and career opportunities as meteorologists-who knows if RTE’s next weather presenters will start their journey in your classroom?!
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Having looked at activity 1, it was really interesting to learn that weather and climate are very different things. I think having the children explain this in their own words would be a great way to assess their understanding of it.
Activity 2 is an excellent way to get children involved. It would have to be adapted slightly for the younger classes but I feel it would be very engaging.
Dr Liston’s paper shows us that science is about inquiry and understanding, technology should be used to show us how weather affects our lives, engineering is a lot more than just building things and mathematics should be used to make real world connections.
As an EBD teacher I would use a weather station to collect daily data on temperature, compare it to online weather websites, design a weather station that would allow us to collect a lot more data and graph our temperature trends over time.
I think this could also be done as a whole school activity in getting a weather station set up for the school. It would be great to encourage outdoor classrooms and learning when the weather is suitable.
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